God has put on my heart an update to a recent message that I sent out on June 20 and 27. Cindy and I had just returned from a trip to DC to visit our children and grandchildren. I described all the joy I experienced on that trip in my June 20 TGIF. I then talked about how before the trip I was struggling to find joy because I had strayed from Him, and I shared the Max Lucado message from his devotional, which I discussed on June 27.
Today, I want to provide an update to those messages based on my joy experience since we have returned home. Note that I also send my weekly TGIF message to some family members and close friends. One of Cindy’s and my dear friends, Susan Balloon, responded to those messages that her Pastor had done a sermon on this topic of seeking and finding joy in your life. He suggested the parishioners should keep a daily journal of three joyful experiences from each day. I thanked Susan for her suggestion, and have kept a daily log since that day. Yesterday made a month that I have been keeping my journal, and I want to share my experience.
What I have found is that each day I think a lot more about joy in my life. I am constantly looking for nuggets of joy that I can enter into my journal. Each day I have found three joyful occurrences to enter into my journal that day. Let me share a few of them with you:
6/21 – Joy is getting Krispy Kreme donuts with granddaughter Greer for a family breakfast,
6/27 – Joy is a good rain shower (made multiple nights),
6/30 – Joy is our weekly “bourbon glaze salmon dinner” with Ann and Eric Beshore,
7/ 2 – Joy is a Cindy fried turkey leg for lunch,
7/ 8 – Joy is playing school with granddaughter Pepi (she is teacher, I am student JimBob, crazy fun time),
7/11 – Joy is learning Joe Morgan’s surgery went well,
7/15 – Joy is dinner at Satchel’s with son Stevie, Cristina, and their girls, and
7/20 – Joy is church at Covenant.
Of course, I have many more examples, but I don’t want to bore you even more! My point is that I now focus more on joy each day, searching for the nuggets I want to share for that day. We are also told to not use the same three joyful memories each day, but we should have a broad experience of joyful moments when we thank God for our life experiences.
This process has definitely improved my outlook on life, and I tend to focus less on all the human issues that can bog us down, if we allow it. Instead, we can choose to be thankful to God for all the joyful blessings He has shared with us.
John 15:11 – These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.
Please note that Cindy and I will be gone for the next two weeks to our annual Hilton Head vacation with our children and grandchildren! I will not have a TGIF for the next three Fridays!